Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADP) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have assigned a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $289.91.

A number of research firms have recently commented on ADP. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $267.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Automatic Data Processing from $270.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho increased their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $281.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Automatic Data Processing from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Sreenivasa Kutam sold 38,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $11,692,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 32,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,781,200. This trade represents a 54.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Automatic Data Processing

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 1,054 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 2.1% in the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,742 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $482,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.4% in the third quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,902,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 0.7% during the second quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 5,698 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,360,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Austin Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Automatic Data Processing by 4.4% during the third quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 923 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.03% of the company’s stock.

Automatic Data Processing Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ADP opened at $296.46 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Automatic Data Processing has a 12 month low of $230.38 and a 12 month high of $309.63. The company has a market capitalization of $120.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.64, a PEG ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $298.04 and its 200 day moving average is $274.50.

Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.12. Automatic Data Processing had a return on equity of 82.36% and a net margin of 19.72%. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.08 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Automatic Data Processing will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Automatic Data Processing Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $1.54 dividend. This is a boost from Automatic Data Processing’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Automatic Data Processing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.74%.

About Automatic Data Processing

Automatic Data Processing, Inc provides cloud-based human capital management solutions worldwide. It operates in two segments, Employer Services and Professional Employer Organization (PEO). The Employer Services segment offers strategic, cloud-based platforms, and human resources (HR) outsourcing solutions.